Our First Rabbit Kits Have Arrived!

After putting the next box in two days ago and watching one of my beloved New Zealand do all of the correct nesting behaviours, this morning I went out and found the nest box full of moving bunny fur! 

I gave the momma a handful of timothy hay, and rubbed her down really well before pulling some of the hair back to get a quick peak.  More than anything I was checking to make sure there were at least three young uns and no dead ones as our weather is a little cool today.

Everything looks alive and healthy, and there appears to be at least five.  This is the first litter for our doe Cadbury, so I'm going to (try) and limit myself to looking in on them just once a day.  I'm fortunate that she's a very friendly (and a bit spoiled) doe.

UPDATE:  The babies have all emerged as of today (2/4/13) and there are 9 of them!  All alive, all happy and all healthy little bundles of bunny fur!

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Ugh... Treating Earmites in Rabbits

Yesterday afternoon I finally figured out why Symphony, one of our two New Zealand does, has been so standoffish and cranky. 

I bred her a couple weeks ago, and so I had been attributing her attitude change to pregnancy.  However, while standing beside her cage petting our buck Cacao, she flicked and ear up and it was full of nasty scabs. 

Having read it in one of my rabbit books, I knew instantly it was ear mites.  I checked the other rabbits and everyone appears to be in fine shape, but I didn't have anything to treat it with.
 

A quick Internet search yielded several results, including buying an ear mite medication.  Second choice was mineral oil. 

So we made a trip out to Petsmart, who sells several different ear mite medications, NONE of which are listed as safe for pregnant animals. (Although they do sell several that can be used on non-pregnant animals. FYI)

On to plan B!

Target had mineral oil, and this morning I gloved up and grabbed a slip tip syringe.  A cc of mineral oil lightly rubbed over the scabbing and dripped into the ear canal was handled in just a matter of moments.  She got a few drops in the other ear as well.  A repeat will be done in 10 days to make sure we've got them all.

I'm not one to blindly treat, so I didn't do the other rabbits.  Some folks recommend it and some don't.  I'll be watching the others closely from here on out and if it looks like we are having an outbreak I may treat them all then.

**UPDATE 1/27/13 - All the crusts are gone and just a few scabbed areas remain but are healing.  A second dose will be administered in a few days, but already Symphony is back to her old happy, friendly self.  No one else is showing any signs, though we continue to check them.

Next time we'll be more prepared for the little things life throws our rabbits,

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In Goes the First Nest Box - Choosing Nest Boxes

Today was day 28 for our first bred doe.  After buying nesting boxes from Bass Equipment, I took one and filled it with about an inch of flaked pine shavings, and stuffed it full of grass hay. 

Since this was our first rabbit to be bred, and I am not really sure about palpitation, we weren't exactly sure she was bred.  The minute I took the nest box out though, she started rearranging it, and when I added a little more loose hay, she immediately picked it up and carried it to the nest.  So far so good!

What we are using for boxes are the wire nest boxes that can be mounted underneath the cage for our big rabbits.  Right now they are being placed in the cages as our cage setup doesn't currently allow for the under mounting.  For the smaller rabbits we've chosen standard metal boxes is a more appropriate size.  The bottom of the metal boxes are plywood and can be changed as needed.

The reason for choosing the subterranean boxes was that I've read so many good things about them.  When not used for nesting, they are just another area of cage and doesn't hurt the overall cage dimensions.  Because they are permanently mounted (or will be) there is nothing but a small box of cardboard liners to store.  They are also easy to clean between litters, which is always a good thing!

The metal boxes were chosen over wood boxes simply because they last nearly forever and can be easily disinfected between litters.  Because we only have a couple of small does we don't have to worry much about storage.

Hopefully in a few days I'll be updating with kit news!

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